Quite An Awkward Situation, Isn't It?
by Moogle Girl X2
Summary: Some of the best relationships come out of really awkward situations, don't they? NaruHina. Possible OOCness?
1. Tree's a Crowd

Quite An Awkward Situation, Isn't It?

Summary: Hinata is watching Naruto train again. Hiding in a tree this time. But a small mishap causes quite an...awkward situation.

Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto. Kishimoto does. (leaves to sob fangirlishly)

Moogle Girl X2 here with her technically third but second posted Naruto fic! And I'm currently listening to I'm An Asshole by Denis Leary. Such a fun song. O.o Moogle says review when you're done!

Anyway...tis a NaruHina, like the one I'm working on. Look forward to that one! It'll be a songfic to Eyes on Me by Faye Wong, featured in Final Fantasy VIII. Well now, what are we waiting for? On with the story! Oh, by the way, Hinata's thought in the first paragraph is a reference to Hammy Uchiha's fic, Christmas Collage. Wonderful fic, wonderful writer! READ HER FICS! .

_Italics_ are thoughts. Mostly Hinata's. - Note that I use the words anyway/in any case/etc a lot. Just ignore that if it annoys you. Humor purposes. Enjoy the fic!

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On a chilly December day, seventeen-year-old Hyuuga Hinata gazed at the blonde haired figure down in the field below. They had been growing closer, she noted before, but she'd never grown out of the habit of spying on him while training. Anyway, she was lucky. The trees in Konoha still held their brown leaves, even though it was nearing the end of December, a few days until she turned eighteen.

He was training again, like always. Except today, it seemed that a few more trees were murdered than usual. _Looks worse than the old stories I was told about Yondaime-sama chopping down Christmas trees, _Hinata thought, nervously tapping her fingers together. Maybe for fear that Yondaime-sama would come to haunt her, taking the thought as an insult. Or maybe she was just paranoid? Who knows? Maybe it's just the- BOOM! A loud explosion and a shout of "Teme!" from below shook Hinata out of her..._thoughts_. Yeah, thoughts. Not inner conversations. She looked back at Naruto to see him glaring at Sasuke, and Sasuke smirking. From what she could see, she guessed that Sasuke came in and redirected Naruto's rasengan. Probably flinging him toward the ground.

"Teme! What the hell was that for!?" The angry fox boy shouted at his teammate. He, with a little help from the former rookie nine and the sand siblings, had managed to defeat Orochimaru and drag, literally drag, the Uchiha back to Konoha last year. A few days after they returned, everything, surprisingly, went back to the way it was before Sasuke left five years ago. But that is another story.

Sasuke smirked once again. "Dobe," he muttered, "just wanted to see what all the explosions were about. Seems to me you were letting off steam about not being able to beat my chidori," he teased. Naruto glared.

"You and me! Right here! Tomorrow!" he snapped, pointing at the onyx-eyed Uchiha. Sasuke shook his head.

"I can't tomorrow. Busy," he responded, shrugging when Naruto stared at him with a 'WTF?' look on his face. "How about Friday?" Sasuke asked. Naruto also shook his head.

"Busy. Um, running errands for Tsunade-baachan. She, uh, wants me to go by the flower shop for some weird reason. Saturday it is then. Any objections?" The eighteen-year-old blonde asked his raven-haired friend. Hinata let out a squeak. _But...I was planning to ask Naruto-kun to...do...something with me? Oh, I don't even know what I was going to ask him anymore. Ramen or a walk? I probably couldn't even muster up the courage to walk up to him, much less ask him on a...a date! _While wandering in her mind, Hinata didn't even notice the branch starting to creak underneath her.

"So what if you can see the darkest side of me? No one will ever change this animal I have become! Help me believe it's not the real me-" Naruto was singing his rendition of a popular song he had heard to Sasuke, saying it reminded him of himself, sorta, but not completely because he was optimistic, and something about ramen. Sasuke wasn't listening. He was simply trying to block out Naruto's horrible singing skills. In any case, fortunately for Sasuke, they were interrupted by a loud CRACK! coming from the forest behind them. Whatever was left of it after Naruto's 'training', anyway.

"The hell was that?" Naruto asked, confused. Sasuke chuckled.

"Probably one of the trees trying to commit suicide before you destroy it with your crappy attempt of a rasengan." Naruto growled.

"Teme."

"Dobe."

Hinata sighed. Now here she was, one foot caught on the corner between the tree and the broken branch, and her pants leg snagging on the splinters, hanging upside down from half a tree limb. And as much as she tried, she couldn't reach her foot to try and unlodge it. _What kind of ninja can't reach their foot while they're upside down?! _In this kind of situation, even the shy, kind, and polite Hyuuga girl couldn't help but think, _Shit._ And to add to her dismay, Naruto and Sasuke ignored the noise and continued with training.

An hour became two hours, which became two and a half hours hanging from a tree. At least Hinata caught some interesting quips of conversation. One had her quite interested.

"So dobe, who are the flowers for?" Sasuke questioned, an all-knowing, almost grin-like smirk on his face. Naruto froze in mid-kick, directed toward a post.

"Uh, why'dya ask?" he asked, almost nervously. Sasuke shook his head. Hinata couldn't catch what he was saying, but it was probably something along the lines of 'because I can.'

"Well, uh...if you** must **know, it's a present for a friend...girl...know...her...is coming up, so..." Hinata was frustrated at this point. Forget her being upside down! She wanted to know who Naruto was getting flowers for! _What did he say? What did he say!?_ She could hear Sasuke laugh, and the topic had somehow changed to shuriken techniques.

Eventually, after another hour, Sasuke started to leave. _Yes!_ Hinata started to think, _Sasuke-san will come this way and see me hanging here and help me down and...and...oh for Kami's sake..._ Sasuke was walking away...in the other direction. Poor Hinata. Oh, Naruto's talking to...himself?

"Huh...what will I...Hinata...Saturday..." he mumbled. Hearing her name, Hinata tried her best to hear what her love was saying. She even cupped her hands around her ears. Apparently now, that was a bad idea. As if hanging from a tree for about four hours now wasn't enough, she had failed to notice that the sky was clouding over. Thunder crashed suddenly, the sound being intensified in her ears because of her hands. Ouch. She saw Naruto look up at the sky as rain started pouring down in sheets.

"Damn, rain." She heard him say. "Better get going." Convinced that the blonde would go the same way Sasuke did, Hinata closed her eyes and sighed. She hoped the rain would act as a kind of lubricant and loosen her foot. She didn't even hear footsteps coming toward her because of the heavy rain.

"Hinata-chan? That you? Why are you hanging from a tree?" Hinata opened her pearly white eyes to see a pair of bright, cerulean eyes staring up at her.

"Na-Na-Naruto-kun!" she squeaked in surprise. Unfortunately not enough to jerk her from her position. Naruto nodded his head.

"Are you okay? I mean, nothing's broken, right?" he asked, concern evident on his features. Well, from what she could see, anyway.

"Other than absolutely no feeling in my limbs and being extremely dizzy, I'm perfectly fine, Naruto-kun," she responded without thinking, but quickly clapped a wet and numb hand over her mouth, surmising that she insulted him with her sarcastic-yet-true answer. Naruto simply gave her his trademark foxy grin.

"Now that's the confident Hinata I know!" he chirped. "Hold on, I'll get you down."

"Na-Naruto-kun,, you don't have to. Y-you can go-"

"Kage bunshin no jutsu!" A clone appeared beside Naruto and began to walk up the tree using its share of chakra. _Oh,_ _Naruto-kun's wasting his chakra on me. Why did I have to be so high up? _Hinata mused sadly. The clone, arriving at where she was being held captive by the giant evil plant, erm, tree, held onto her foot and carefully started unraveling the fabric of her pants leg from the remains of the branch. As soon as it finished, she felt her foot starting to slip, slip, then completely slide off, leaving her to plummet toward the ground. She squeezed her eyes shut and braced for impact. Waiting, waiting...huh? No impact came. Instead, Hinata reopened her eyes to see that she had been caught by a pair of, in her opinion, strong arms, and was looking straight into Uzumaki Naruto's smiling face.

"You thought I would let you fall, didn't you?" he queried, grinning. Hinata blushed.

"N-Not really. J-Just instinct," she answered. Naruto chuckled and slightly ruffled her hair.

"Alright, alright. Let's set you down, ne? And- whoa! Careful!" Naruto had gingerly put Hinata down, helping her stand straight. As soon as she did that, though, she felt as if her legs turned to jelly and that the blood was rushing out of her head. Poor thing. Lucky for her, the Kyuubi kid was there to catch her.

"Dizzy?"

"Just a bit," she said, smiling, slightly embarrassed. Naruto gave the white-eyed girl a sympathetic smile before picking her back up. Hinata's blush just got ten times worse.

"Come on, let's get out of the rain. There's a hollow tree nearby, and it'll make a good place to stay dry and wait this storm out. You look like you could use a rest anyway, Hinata-chan," Naruto teased. Hinata smiled and nodded, whilst trying not to faint from being so close to Naruto.

After a minute or two of Naruto running and Hinata trying to stay conscious, both were finally sitting down in the dry sanctuary of a hollow tree. Which wasn't so evil to Hinata, unlike the other tree. Upon entry, Hinata was surprised. The hollow had been dug out a little deeper, and had a few basic essentials for someone to possibly stay the night. A lamp, some cups of instant ramen, a few packets of matches, two pans, and a sleeping bag. Naruto saw her shocked face and grinned.

"I found this little hole here and decided to put some stuff in it. If I needed a break from training, I could just come here!" he told her. She nodded, still surprised that Naruto would go to all the trouble to furnish a tree. He started a small fire in the middle with a pile of twigs and a match, then plopped down beside the indigo-haired girl.

"Now," he started, "mind telling me how you got yourself stuck on a tree?" Just as soon as it went away, Hinata's blush returned.

"Ano, umm...well, I-I was w-watching you train while sitting in the tree, a-and th-the branch had c-collapsed under me," she said, embarrassed. Naruto put an arm around her shoulders, unaware that Hinata's cheeks were inventing new shades of red. He smiled at her.

"You should've just come on over! I would have liked it if you'd have trained with me, you didn't just have to watch," he said. "Anyway, how long were you hanging there, Hinata-chan?" Hinata gulped.

"U-Um...not for long...j-just...four hours or so-"

"NANI!?" Naruto shouted standing up. He looked part horrified, part shocked. "How come you didn't yell for help from me?! Or from Sasuke-teme even?!" Hinata appeared crestfallen after Naruto's outburst. Seeing her face, Naruto's expression softened and he calmed down.

"I-I just didn't w-want to interrupt your training, Naruto-kun. T-That's all," Hinata responded. Gazing up, she saw Naruto's trademark smile back on his face as he sat back down by her and replaced his arm to its new spot; around her shoulders. That smile never failed to make her feel better.

"Hinata-chan, who cares about training? If you are ever, I mean, **ever**, in trouble, just yell for me! Screw training! I'd rather you be safe than train for a day! Even if you have to shout 'Naruto! Get your ass over here, you baka!!'" Hinata was practically rolling with laughter at his last comment. Naruto beamed at her. It was nice to hear Hinata let go and have a good laughing fit once in a while, wasn't it?

"Naruto-kun, you, haha, you know I would never, aha, call you a baka," she told him, still giggling, but smiling sincerely. He just grinned once more.

"Sakura-chan would jump at the chance," he joked, "but I know you wouldn't, Hinata-chan!" They sat in a comfortable silence for a few minutes, sometimes the silence being broken with a small giggle from Hinata. Suddenly, a question came to her mind.

"Naruto-kun, I heard you say my name earlier, and something about flowers. What were you saying?" Hinata questioned, looking up at Naruto. He laughed nervously, scratching the back of his head. _Shit! Caught in the act! _

"Ano, well, your birthday is on the twenty-seventh, right? And...the flowers...and...yeah..." he mumbled. Hinata put two and two together.

"You...were going to get me flowers, Naruto-kun? That's very sweet of you! But...y-you don't h-have to," she said, happy he was thinking of her. She also realized that her stutter had returned, and wondered how she was speaking clearly beforehand. Naruto started laughing.

"Just like you told me that I didn't have to get you down from that tree? Haha, I'll probably do it anyway!" He gave her a kind smile and, before she knew it, she was leaning on him, warm and comfortable. Minutes passed, but both were silent, content with the moment and each others' presence. Eventually, Naruto laughed again.

"Well, those explanations were embarrassing, weren't they?" Hinata nodded.

"Heh," Naruto continued, "you being stuck in a tree and me having to spoil your birthday present. It's, well, it's-"

"Quite an awkward situation, isn't it?" Hinata finished for him. Naruto nodded and grinned. The rain was starting to slow, but neither seemed to care. Both were content with exactly where they were

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Should I continue this? Need your opinions!

MGX2


	2. Birthday! All Bets Are In!

Quite An Awkward Situation, Isn't It? Chapter Two

Summary: Some of the best relationships come out of really awkward situations, don't they?

Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto. Kishimoto does. (leaves to sob fangirlishly, then plot)

Heh heh. Truly, I did consider the fact that death or unconsciousness would come from hanging from a tree for hours on end, but I figured that it would have to be much longer than four hours or less. Ah, the wonders of science and torture...

I ended up keeping it in for humor purposes, though. Gravity and theory can't beat me! Mwaha! ...(is slightly embarrassed) Glad you put up with my fighting nature, though! Having twelve plus emails get into my inbox overnight made my day. Here's chapter two! And no more trees for Hinata :P I also considered her falling out of her pants. XD But then how would we get into Naruto's little tree cave? Alas, fate is cruel to me :3 Sorry if anyone is offended by that statement.

I love my reviewers! Happy holidays, all! By the way, my birthday and Hinata's birthday are on the same day! On the twenty-seventh wish both of us a happy birthday :D

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The people of Konoha didn't know what was stranger; the fact that the Kyuubi vessel had a girlfriend, the Hyuuga heiress nonetheless, or how they had gotten together. Rumors stated that it had something to do with hanging from a tree for an obscene amount of time, overhearing conversation, and something about ramen. Don't believe everything you hear, though. It could come back to bite you in the ass. Literally if you consider the time when there was a nasty rumor flying around about Inuzuka Kiba. It only lasted a few days, considering whenever someone had talked about it, they happened to acquire a "mysterious" bite mark on their posteriors. Ironically, it was about the size of Akamaru's mouth... But that, my friends, is also another story.

RING! RING! RING! CRASH! Hyuuga Hinata had just sent her alarm clock flying into a wall with an unnecessarily-charged-with-extra-chakra jyuuken strike. It was _her_ birthday, and there was no way in hell she was going to let her alarm clock ruin her day to sleep in. Her father, on the other hand…

"Hinata! What in blazes are you doing? Just because this is the day the clan heir, you, turns eighteen does _not _give her the right to destroy the house!" Hiashi scolded his daughter. Hinata simply muttered something into her pillow and turned away from her father. Maybe she was too tired to remember that this man was both her father _and_ the head of the clan, or she just didn't care at the time. Either way, her gesture angered the man.

"Hinata! Do not turn away from me when I am speaking to you! It is showing disrespect to your elders and is unfitting for the future head of the Hyuuga clan! Do you want us to replace you with Hanabi, or do you want to continue to be the heir? Answer me!" Hinata groaned quietly then sat up and shook her head. Hiashi smirked.

"That's what I thought. Now, get up and make yourself look presentable. You're an adult now. Go out into the village and do something for the day. Preferably train, in my opinion. You're qualified to be a jounin now, anyway. But, it is your choice." Hiashi had finally considered his eldest daughter worthy of the Hyuuga name and title of heir when she had passed the chuunin exams on her second try. He was still strict, but did not shout and degrade her like he used to. Even now, he compared her to Neji, but didn't use it to hurt her, but sort of encourage her. He was finally acting like her father.

Hinata slowly got out of bed. Looking in the mirror, she saw that it looked like she had been inside a tornado; her long, indigo-colored hair was sticking up in some places, and was curved into numerous tangles in others, the right strap of the tank top she had worn to bed was halfway down her shoulder, and her shorts had somehow turned to the right. She had to fight the urge to giggle. Imagine if Naruto-kun had seen her like this!

"Ohayo Hinata-chan!" She squeaked and spun around to see Naruto resting his arms on her windowsill, a grin adorning his flushed face. Hinata's eyes widened and she blushed in embarrassment. Quickly locking her door, she waved Naruto inside.

'C-come on in, Naruto-kun! You must be cold. And close the window! How did you get it open, anyway?" Putting her boyfriend's comfort in front of her image on her priorities list, she allowed him inside. Hastily, he hopped in and closed the window, shaking the snow off of him. Hinata sighed, but smiled.

"Thanks, Hina-chan!" Naruto gave her a quick kiss on the forehead before taking off his damp jacket and sitting down on her futon. Hinata shook her head and smiled once more.

"Naruto-kun, you got my floor wet. What if otou-san comes in and notices someone was in here? And what if he finds out it was you?" she playfully scolded. Naruto chuckled nervously.

"Ano, I think it'll be dry soon. Hopefully." Hinata simply walked behind the chair and hugged him, her head leaning on his shoulder.

"This is why I locked the door, in case you were wondering."

"Heh, you're a mind reader, Hina-chan. By the way, nice look you got there," he teased. Hinata blushed, realizing she still looked like a mess. Naruto laughed, patting the top of her head. "I think you look adorable." he told her, grin widening. Hinata's face merely reddened some more.

"Onee-chan?" Hinata heard Hanabi's voice outside her door. "Is someone in there? I hear voices." Hinata panicked a little. She placed a hand over Naruto's mouth, just in case.

"Iie, Hanabi-chan, it's just the radio."

"Alright. By the way, happy birthday, onee-chan," Hanabi said. Hinata sighed with relief. _Thank Kami she didn't use the byakugan! _

"Arigatou, Hanabi-chan."

"Oh, nee-chan, tell Naruto-san I said hi," Hanabi quipped. Hinata's face paled. She could feel her sister's mischievous smirk.

"Tell otou-san and I swear, Hanabi…"

"Don't worry. I won't tell." Hinata sighed with relief once again. She was just given another reason to love her little sister.

"But," Hanabi continued, "I want to come in your room. Otou-san is going to make me train as soon as he finds me." Hinata suppressed a giggle.

"Hai, hai," she replied, finally taking her hand off of Naruto's mouth and unlocking her door, allowing her sister entry. Hanabi walked in, quickly closing the door behind her. She gave Naruto a nod in greeting before flopping on her sister's futon.

"Otou-san knows that sensei has us all training hard for the chuunin exams coming up in summer, but he still insists that I train even more! Is he not aware that it is _extremely_ cold out there?" Hanabi vented, while Naruto simply laughed.

"You think that's bad? Try getting two bells from Kakashi-sensei while not realizing that you had to work together to do it. Sakura-chan kept fawning over Sasuke-teme, Sasuke-teme kept being a complete and utter jerk with a superiority complex, and I ended up getting a finger shoved up my ass crack." Naruto laughed harder when he saw the Hyuuga sisters' wide-eyed expressions. Hanabi was the first to speak.

"U-Uh…Naruto-san, I will regrettably admit that I have to agree. I…think I'll go train later." Seems like Hanabi may now develop Hinata's stutter. Hinata just got rid of it, at least mostly around Naruto, but apparently passed it on. Hinata, recovering from her shock at Naruto's…vulgar…explanation, smiled and playfully smacked him upside the head.

"Now now, Naruto-kun. Don't scare the genin. I'm sure poor Konohamaru-kun is scarred for life now that he's known you," she teased. Naruto pouted, then grinned.

"That means I've scarred every one of the former rookie nine."

"And Team Gai," Hinata added. She could tell Naruto was plotting something against everyone. She'd just have to keep an eye on him. A prank pulled on Neji may expose their secret relationship to Hiashi. That would definitely _not_ be a good thing.

"Anyway," Naruto continued, "How 'bout we get outta here and do something fun? My Hina-chan only turns eighteen once! Hanabi, wanna come?" Hanabi shook her head, smiling.

"Iie, you two should go do something together. Arigatou, though." Naruto shrugged, then jumped up and opened Hinata's closet door. Hinata squeaked.

"N-Na-Naruto-kun! What are you doing?!" Hanabi bit back a laugh as Naruto turned around, a grin plastered on his face.

"I'm not gonna let you go out in the dead of winter in a tank top and shorts, Hina-chan," Hinata looked in her mirror and blushed. She was still in her pajamas, and still looked like a mess. "I think the only person I would let go outside in a tank top and shorts in the dead of winter is fuzzy-brows. I probably wouldn't be able to talk him out of it." She giggled at the thought. Lee would most likely say it had to do with training, then ramble about the power of youth and Gai-sensei. Naruto rummaged through Hinata's closet, pulling out a dark blue turtle-neck sweater and a pair of jeans and tossed them at her. She clumsily caught them, staring at him blankly.

"Well, what are you waiting for?"

"A-Ano, Naruto-kun, I can't change with you watching…" Hinata's face was now keeping track of the shades of red it has invented. It scratched out 203 and wrote 204. Naruto stared for a minute, then something in his mind clicked and he started to frantically wave his hands in front of his face.

"Ah! A-Ano, gomen Hina-chan! I didn't mean, I mean, I would never, erm," Hanabi cut Naruto off by shoving him in the closet and closing the door.

"I'll tell you when it's safe," she told him, hitting the door in the process to get her point across. "Go ahead, nee-chan. No peeking, Naruto!" A muffled whine of 'Why would I? I'm not ero-sennin…' was heard from behind the door.

Naruto huffed and leaned against the wall. _Why the hell would she think I would peek at Hina-chan?_ Naruto thought angrily. He heard a low laugh in his head.

"**_Because you know you want to, kit," _**The Kyuubi's voice rang in his mind. Naruto pouted.

"_No way! I'm not a pervert! I'm not!" _

"**_Yeah. Keep saying that, kit. You're just denying your hormones their rights." _**Naruto could feel his cheeks heat up a little. He hoped Hinata wouldn't see the blush. Or, even worse, Hanabi or Neji. They would probably beat the crap out of him for those thoughts about Hinata.

"_Thanks, but no thanks! I respect my girlfriend, mind you!" _

"_**So that's why I can see those dreams you've been having where-" **_

"_Just stop there, baka kitsune! You don't know shit 'bout what I dream!" _Kyuubi was roaring with laughter.

"_**Just keep denying it, kit. Keep denying it." **_

"_Kyuubi-teme…" _Finally, the door opened. Thank Kami! Hinata gave him a warm smile.

"Let's go, Naruto-kun." Naruto smirked, grabbed his jacket, and hopped out the window.

"Meet you out front, Hina-chan!" Hanabi shook her head while Hinata giggled and grabbed her white winter coat before heading out into the hallway.

"Huh? Hey! Naruto! Hinata-chan!" Naruto and Hinata had been walking down the village streets when they heard someone call. They turned around to see Sakura running up to them. Naruto waved to her.

"Ohayo Sakura-chan!" he called to his teammate. Unfortunately, she ignored him and ran up to Hinata, slinging an arm around her shoulder.

"Happy birthday! What did Naruto get you?" Naruto visibly winced.

"Ne, ne, Sakura-chan, you shouldn't spoil the secret, now! That information is classified!"

"In other words, you haven't even bought it yet. Some boyfriend you are, usuratonkachi." Sasuke, watching the scene from a few yards away, decided to grace them with his oh, so wonderful I-Am-The-Great-Uchiha-Sasuke-So-Bow-To-Me-Peon presence. Naruto stuck his tongue out at him.

"Emo jackass."

"Dobe."

"Can't you think of any other insults than usuratonkachi or dobe?"

"Can't you think of any good insults that might actually affect me?"

"Good point."

"If you paid more attention to your Hyuuga girlfriend than trying to insult me, you'd realize that Sakura just dragged the reluctant girl off to the shopping district." Naruto glanced to his right to see…that Hinata wasn't there.

"Ehh?! Hina-chan?! Oi! Wait for me!" Sasuke sighed as he watched his best friend dart down the street toward the shopping district. Slowly, he followed suit.

"Hey! Hinata! Let's go in here!" Sakura pulled a flustered Hinata into a local clothing store. "Let's find you something cute!" Sakura lead the Hyuuga heiress towards some fancy looking dresses. _Why dresses…?_

"This one's pretty, don't you think? Here, come over here. You like it? It'd look pretty on you." Sakura held a long-sleeved, velvet lavender dress up to the girl, as if to see exactly how it would look. She beamed.

"Perfect! Why don't you go try it on? Tell me if you like it." She led the indigo-haired kunoichi to the dressing rooms and gently pushed her in one of the stalls. "Go on! It'll be fun."

"O-Okay." Hinata didn't see the mischievous smirk on Sakura's face. She walked to the front of the store and peered out the window as the Hyuuga changed. _Here comes Romeo now! _Sakura thought as she saw Naruto coming toward the store at high speed. She stepped out and waved at him, saw him grin and walk toward her, and went back in.

"**_Shannaro! Everything's going according to plan! Romeo and Juliet: Ninja Style, Act I, Scene II begins!" _**Inner Sakura cheered. Sakura had to keep herself from cackling. This plan wouldn't fail! She _was _going to see a cute romance moment involving Naruto and Hinata. She would definitely _not _lose a bet to that stupid Ino-pig! What? Putting Naruto and Hinata in a slightly awkward situation because of a bet is mean, you say? Well, you may want to keep that to yourself. Don't want to be met with that 'one finger' of Sakura's, do you?

"Oi! Oi! Sakura-chan! Where's Hina…" Naruto's sentence was cut short as he saw Hinata emerge from the dressing room in the dress Sakura picked out. She was, well, beautiful. Naruto's complimenting thoughts were the complete opposite of Hinata's, though, seeing as she turned bright red, let out a squeak, and ran back into the dressing room.

"H-Hey! Hina-chan?!" Naruto was about to ask what was going on when Sakura flicked him on the back of the head.

"You're supposed to compliment her, not stare like a baka. Baka!" she scolded.

"But Sakura-chaaan!" he whined. How was he supposed to know Hinata was going to walk out from a room and look more goddess-like than usual? Hinata then walked out, velvet dress in hand, still adorning her familiar blush. Naruto then got an idea, and mocked anger.

"Sakura-chan! How could you show Hinata her birthday present before I even gave it to her!? I haven't even had a chance to buy it yet!" Sakura's eyes widened, then she understood. She decided to play along. _Nice improv, Romeo! _she thought.

"If you were smart, you would've bought this dress before I did! Now it's my present to Hinata-chan!" Sakura stuck her tongue out at him while Naruto mock-glared at his teammate.

"Ano, Sakura-chan, N-Naruto-kun, onegai, i-it's alright…" Hinata stuttered, afraid the two would start arguing and Naruto would end up in the hospital from one of Sakura's chakra-charged punches.

"But it's not alright, Hina-chan! Sakura stole my gift idea!" Sakura scowled.

"Well then, you should've got it before! Or at least had the clerk hold it for you! Now you're too late, procrastinating baka!" Hinata frowned as the two continued to argue. Tired of the bickering and finding her voice, she shouted,

"Cut it out!" The two team seven ninja looked at her, startled. She calmly walked up to Naruto, pressing her fingers together along the way. Sasuke chose this moment to walk in the store. He stood next to Sakura, raising his eyebrow. She simply held a finger up to his mouth.

"Just h-having you with me, Naruto-kun, i-is the best present I could ever have," she told him, pearly eyes filled with sincerity. She leaned up, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissed him. Naruto happily kissed back. _Plan worked! _he thought. Sakura thought the same thing, plus the fact that she won the bet. She grinned and giggled slightly. Sasuke raised his eyebrow once again.

"Win a bet?" he asked. She nodded.

"I am now 1000 ryou richer thanks to Ino-pig." Her gaze returned to the two who were previously engaged in a bet-winning kiss. They were now smiling at each other, unaware of all the eyes on them. Love is the best reason for being unaware of others, though.

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Me: Why can't I have Naruto-kun for my birthday? It's the same day! ;-; (squeezes Yondy plushie)

I continued. Happy? Review:)


	3. Secrets?

Quite An Awkward Situation, Isn't It? Chapter Three

Summary: Some of the best relationships come out of really awkward situations, don't they?

Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto. Kishimoto does. (leaves to sob fangirlishly, then plot, then cackle)

Not much to say. I don't think many people noticed I updated last time. Oh well. A new chapter's coming at ya :)

Been playing Okami lately. Fun, fun game! (hearts) So sorry that I'm lazy and haven't updated in forever. Forgive me? ;-;

I love reviews, and the reviewers. Makes me feel special. 3

A little forewarning: this chapter isn't going to be as humorous as the others. It's almost...angsty, I guess. But I guess you would've figured that out considering the chapter title is called "Secrets", huh? -.-, This chapter is so cheese-flavored...

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Uzumaki Naruto was panicking. This day started out really sucky; Ichiraku's was closed, it started raining, his favorite jacket tore, Jiraiya conned him into giving him Gama-chan, his wallet, Sasuke wasn't back from his mission with Kakashi-sensei yet, and Tsunade summoned him to her office to discuss a "certain" village secret. But none of that could compare to what had happened after his meeting with the Godaime. Uzumaki Naruto saw the heart-wrenching sight of his girlfriend, his Hina-chan, running away from the office doors in tears.

_Flashback  _

"Naruto," Tsunade began, a serious tone evident in her voice, "I need to ask you a few questions about when you had used the Kyuubi's chakra." Naruto tilted his head to the side, confused. He shrugged.

"'Kay baa-chan. Whaddya want to know?" Unbeknownst to the two blondes, a "little mouse" was listening in.

"I had thought that from when the Yondaime sealed Kyuubi in you up to your training with Jiraiya, you had never come in contact with the demon's chakra. But for you to have known about it there had to have been another time when you used it. Do you get what I'm saying? I just want to know when you used the chakra for the first time." Naruto stared at her blankly for a second before his mind registered the question. He grinned.

"Oh! I see. The first time, well, it was when Team 7 had its first big mission. You know, the one to the wave country. I told you about it before." Tsunade nodded.

"Your and Sasuke's fight with Haku, right? When did the chakra actually start to appear?" Naruto's grin fell. He looked down at the ground. From what Tsunade could see, he appeared to have a mixed expression; both ashamed and saddened.

"Sasuke. He… I was down and about to get hit by a barrage of needles from Haku. Sasuke jumped in front of me and took the attack. I…thought he had died. Then I just kinda, well, snapped. Kyuubi's chakra practically came pouring out 'cause of my anger, I guess." Naruto finally tore his gaze away from the ground and looked at the Hokage. She gave him a sympathetic smile.

"Say, baa-chan, why did you ask?" Naruto questioned.

"I just-" A crash was heard in the hallway just outside the office. Naruto sped to the door and looked out to see Hinata running off in tears, and a potted plant's soil sprawled all over the floor.

"Oh shit! Gotta go, baa-chan! Talk later!"  
**…**

There were only two conclusions he could come up with. Either Hiashi had discovered their relationship and she couldn't hold her emotions in when she saw him, or, and this one terrified him, she had overheard the conversation between him and Tsunade about Kyuubi. As much as he wanted to deny it, something in his mind told him that the latter was correct, and he'd better do something quick. He darted out the doors after the Hyuuga's retreating form. Catching up with the girl, he placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. She turned around and, glancing into the blonde's face once, latched onto him. She sobbed, burying her face into his chest.

"Na-Na-Naruto-kun! W-Why…" Naruto's face darkened. He slowly wrapped his arms around her.

"Gomen, Hina-chan…I…"

"Why was I s-so oblivious?" she asked through sobs, tightening the embrace. Naruto gave her a sad, questioning look.

"Why could I n-never s-see why you w-were suffering?" she continued, "I tried so hard to figure it out. I-I never could understand why the villagers gave you s-such cold stares. I wanted t-to know so badly, so I c-could maybe comfort you in some way. But I never knew! I never figured it out! I-If I had made an effort to make a connection with everyday knowledge, I might've known sooner. Gomen, Naruto-kun, gomen!"

Naruto was thankful that somehow, no one was in the hallway at the time. If someone saw, they'd probably go sprint off to the Hyuuga compound and inform Hiashi that 'the damn fox demon must have hurt Hinata-sama in some way since she was crying and he was in the vicinity.' Screw the fact that she was crying in his arms, and he was trying his best to comfort her. Still, comforting his love, or any of his friends, really, came first, onlookers or not.

"Hina-chan, please stop crying," Naruto whispered into her ear, stroking her hair. Hinata looked up at the smiling blonde boy, then quickly placed her gaze back upon the ground. He brushed away the tears on her cheeks.

"Now smile," he told her. He gently tilted her head up until the white-eyed girl was looking into his eyes. Slowly but surely, she smiled. Naruto grinned.

"There we go! Now, follow me." He slid his hand into hers and began to lead her out of the building and onto the village streets.

"Na-Naruto-kun? Where are we going?" asked Hinata as they crossed the bridge where team 7 usually met. Naruto turned to face her and winked.

"Somewhere," he responded cheekily. Naruto chuckled at her confused expression. "We're almost there, Hina-chan. Don't worry."

**… **

Hinata gasped. She had figured that it would be cloudy all day, but apparently Mother Nature had other plans. A full moon was out, and thousands upon thousands of stars were visible in the sky. Every girl's fantasy, right? It got even better when the place Naruto had in mind happened to be a waterfall a little ways away from the team 7 training ground. She heard Naruto laugh from behind her.

"You like it?"

"Hai," the indigo-haired girl whispered, "it's b-beautiful, Naruto-kun!" Naruto snickered.

"It's kind of funny how I found this place. Me and Sasuke were sparring one night. We got really tired, and really thirsty. We ended up arguing about who was supposed to bring the water bottles, but forgot. I swear it was that teme who was supposed to bring them, but he says it was me. Anyway, he started chasing me, so being the highly intellectual shinobi I was, I ran like hell." Hinata giggled at his explanation. Naruto grinned, then continued.

"Apparently my intellect decided to take a break, and I ended up falling in this here river. All Sasuke saw was that I had suddenly vanished and started freaking out. Soon as I got back up to the surface, I started laughing my ass off. Though I had a nasty bruise on my arm for a few days afterward. Damn teme punches harder when he's mad than when he's fighting!" Naruto laughed, then sighed and plopped down on the ground, staring at the moon's reflection on the water. Hinata frowned slightly, concerned. She quietly sat down next to the blonde boy. He sighed once again.

"Hina-chan…I…gomen, Hina-chan. I should've told you about Kyuubi sooner, but I-" Hinata cut him off. Placing an arm around his shoulders and leaning on him, she smiled.

"Naruto-kun, I don't care about that. I-I love you for you. Naruto is Naruto. That won't change. You were w-worried I might hate you or be scared of you, r-right?" Naruto gaped for a second, then smiled. He nodded, laughing.

"Hina-chan can read minds."

"That's right," she quipped, "Now, about the whole Kyuubi thing. U-um, does he talk to you, o-or are you just...?" Naruto faked an insulted look.

"I can't believe you would think I'm insane, Hina-chan!" He sighed dramatically. "Oh, woe is Naruto. His love thinks him to be crazy!" The blonde boy's head dropped. Hinata giggled. Then she did what any caring, loving girlfriend of a jinchuuriki would do. She poked him in the stomach, right in the center of the seal.

**_"What the hell was that?" _**Kyuubi growled within Naruto. On the outside, Naruto shifted. Hinata looked at him with questioning eyes.

"Did he say anything?"

"Uh, well," Naruto started. Hinata then poked it again.

_**"Kit, if you don't tell your bitch to stop shaking my **oh-so-wonderful **abode, I will do it personally." **_

"Hey! Don't call Hinata that you freaking teme!" Naruto shouted, unfortunately for him, aloud. Hinata raised an eyebrow. Naruto chuckled nervously, scratching the back of his head.

"Uh, heh heh, yeah, Kyuubi talks to me. Can Hina-chan quit poking me now?" Hinata gave him a broad smile.

"Tell him I said 'hi.'" Naruto could hear the Kyuubi sigh in annoyance.

_**"Oh yes, 'hi,' indeed. I'll show you 'hi!'" ** _

"Shut up, you bastard."

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Hinata took that a lot easier than she should have. XD Oh well, cheesy is good in moderation.

Haha, Kyuubi got his own awkward situation! Although it seems he just wants to murder our favorite Hyuuga now. O.o

Oh! I'm going to edit chapter two, just because I'm OCD like that. :) Give me ideas for the next chapter! I'm hoping for a mission-based one, soon. Plus I need to start adding a mini Japanese dictionary to the end of chapters for people who don't know what some words mean. That'll start next chapter. Hope to see you then!

By the way, did Tsunade know when Naruto first used the Kyuubi chakra? O.o


	4. Mission

Quite An Awkward Situation, Isn't It? Chapter Four

Summary: Some of the best relationships come out of really awkward situations, don't they?

Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto. Kishimoto does. (leaves to sob fangirlishly, then plot, then cackle, then grin)

I'm bad about updating, aren't I? Oh, Japanese terms and definitions at the end of the chapter. :D

Review and save a moogle! (holds moogle plushie over a fire)

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_Hinata ran blindly through the forest, searching high and low with her byakugan to find her teammates. Find the scroll and return, easy mission, right? Especially with Shikamaru acting as leader. Apparently not when they each had to take a different path; Naruto to the left, Shikamaru to the right, and her continuing straight. Everything started to go downhill when Naruto didn't check in over the communication device after an hour like they had planned. Shikamaru said he'd look for him and check in with her in another hour. He didn't respond when she called, bringing us to our current situation. Without warning, a loud scream pierced the still air._

_"Naruto-kun!" Hinata gasped, recognizing the voice. She immediately turned and started sprinting in the direction of the sound's source. _

_Coming upon a sight she never wanted to see, Hinata fell to her knees, tears leaking out of her eyes; Naruto was directly in front of her, lying in a pool of his own blood with several kunai piercing his body. Hands trembling, she gently caressed his cheek. His eyes slowly opened, revealing unusually dull cerulean orbs. He looked up and, catching her gaze, gave his trademark foxy grin._

_"Hey Hina-chan," he whispered. She stifled a sob._

_"Na-Na-Naru-k-kun..." Tears fell freely as she cradled his head in her lap. He gave a slight chuckle._

_"You act like I'm already dead. I'm gonna be the future Rokudaime Hokage, you know. I won't die here."_

_"I-I kn-know." He smiled._

_"Good. Now, Hina-chan, I want you to do me a favor. I want you to get out of here. They'll be back."_

_"De-demo..."_

_"Please, HIna-chan." Hinata hung her head, giving in._

_"Good girl. Now, go!" She squinted her eyes shut to hold back tears and nodded. Standing up and taking one last glance at her love, she turned and began to run. After only running about twenty feet, however, a shadow passed overhead._

'Anenemy?!_' With her mind racing, she whipped around to see the enemy standing over Naruto. Her eyes widened._

_"Na-!" For her, time slowed. The figure had pulled out a katana. Slowly, the menacing blade was brought down._

_"Na..."_

_It ran through the blonde boy's chest. Hinata froze._

'Na...Na...He..._' Her mind just stopped. The figure, now noticing her, fled. Finding control over her body, she sprinted and slid to Naruto's side._

_"Naruto-kun!" Tears fell in torrents. Naruto coughed up blood, then chuckled weakly._

_"S-spoke too soon, I g-guess." Hinata choked out a sob. Naruto lifted a shaky hand and brushed a tear off of her cheek._

_"Hey, don't cry for me. I-if I had to choose how to die, it'd be with you by my side."_

_"N-no-" Using her as support, he pulled himself up and leaned into her ear._

_"I love you," he whispered._

_"I love you, too." He smiled and planted a light peck on her cheek before slumping to the ground. His chest ceased to rise. Hinata couldn't breathe, couldn't move; her body had simply shut down._

_"Na...Na...Na..."  
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_"Naruto-kun!!" Hinata shrieked as she jolted into a sitting position. Her shout echoed throughout their encampment and the surrounding forest, but her teammates didn't stir. Shikamaru was lying on his back with his pillow over his head and Naruto was, well, everywhere. His legs formed a 'P' shape, his right arm was flung out to the side and his left arm was shoved under his pillow. Not to mention his sleeping bag was about five feet away from him. The Hyuuga heiress sighed with relief, realizing that it was all a dream.

It felt so real, though, she thought. She didn't even notice Naruto coming up behind her until he plopped down on her left and laid his head on her shoulder.

"What you doin' up?" he mumbled sleepily.

"N-nothing, re-really." Naruto furrowed his eyebrows.

"You only stutter now if you're upset, embarrassed, or cold. What's up?"

"I'm okay, r-really, Naruto-kun. You can go back to sleep," she coaxed. Stubborn as ever, Naruto stood his ground. He traced her cheek with his hand, feeling the wet remnants of her tears. She apparently had cried in her sleep.

"You were crying. What's wrong? Bad dream?" He was sitting up now, his arm around her waist. Hinata sighed and nodded.

"I-it felt so real... You...you..." She leaned over and hugged him tightly, burying her face into his shoulder. "Don't leave me. And if we come across a split path, don't go left." Naruto gave a light chuckle.

"Alright, I promise I won't go left. I'll make sure Shikamaru won't, either." Hinata smiled.

"Thank you."  
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After packing up and setting off at dawn, the mission went without a hitch and there were no injuries while retrieving the scroll, unless you count Naruto running into a tree when he got a little too into the story that he was excitedly recounting to Hinata, which, in turn, caused Hinata to giggle and Shikamaru to roll his eyes and mutter 'troublesome...'. And, to the relief of the dark-haired kunoichi, they never came across a split path.

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XD I sleep the way Naruto does- everywhere, in every position possible. The dream sequence almost made my friend cry when she was reading the rough draft. Until she found out it was a dream. Then she was mad at me. Ah, you cry too easily, Kel-chan. :3

Preview for next chapter:

Naruto glared at the potted plant.

"Grow, damn it!"

XD Next chapter will be based on a true story, no joke.

Demo: But

Arigato: Thank you

Gomen: Sorry

Dobe: Dumbass (used primarily by Sasuke)

Usuratonkachi: Clumsy idiot (used primarily by Sasuke)

Teme: Bastard (used primarily by Naruto)

otou-san: father

baa-chan: Granny, Grandma, Old Lady

nii/nee-san: Brother/Sister

Itadakimasu: Japanese phrase used before eating a meal

I think I hit most of the ones I use. I don't use that many, and I only use the basic ones that are most commonly used in NaruFiction. I don't use terms that no one would understand unless they spoke the language (as in entire sentences). :3


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